They rented a big red carpet and taped it down just inside the gates. Some of the more artistic Red Hots -- the in-house dance team -- painted baseballs on young faces.

And if this 10th Opening Day at AutoZone Park didn't feel a whole lot like the one in 2000, when the place made its spectacular debut, it was a welcome reminder that some of the best parts of Memphis aren't in any danger of leaving town for a richer offer.

The zoo isn't going anywhere. Shelby Farms is pretty well nailed down. Mississippi sunsets are here well into the future.

Same with the ballpark at Third and Union.

"We aren't going to Kentucky," said Dave Chase, Redbirds president of baseball operations. "I think the ballpark is staying in Memphis."

Chase wasn't in the mood to gloat about this, mind you. The Redbirds have had their own troubles.

A decade later, it's clear that Dean Jernigan was right to think a Downtown ballpark could flourish.

A decade later, it's equally clear that Jernigan was wrong to think it could be essentially self-funded.

The money doesn't add up any longer. The Redbirds struggle to make the $4.5 million in annual bond payments.

The St. Louis Cardinals backed out of a deal to buy the team during the offseason, and the Redbirds are working hard to find another buyer.

On top of all that, the team continues to find itself fighting the juggernaut that is the Memphis Tigers for media attention.

Last year, the Tigers' run to the Final Four all but eliminated local coverage of Major League Baseball's Civil Rights exhibition game, which was subsequently moved to Cincinnati.

This year, John Calipari's bolt to Kentucky distracted and exhausted the populace.

"We haven't gotten a break," said Chase. "It's been a hard winter for us."

Which -- in a certain way -- made Thursday's opener that much sweeter.

The place looked spectacular. It always looks spectacular, all the more so when people come pouring into it.